Cruising is a social activity that primarily consists of driving a car. Cruising can be an expression of the perceived freedom of possessing a driver's license. Cruising is distinguished from regular driving by the social and recreational nature of the activity, which characterized by an impulsively random, often aimless course. A popular route (or "strip") is often the focus of cruising. "Cruise nights" are evenings during which cars drive slowly, bumper-to-bumper, through small towns.
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In Canada
In Canada, the term cruising may also denote the practice of driving slowly in a vehicle while smoking marijuana. This is in part due to the cold weather from November to March that makes smoking outside difficult and Canada's lax enforcement of marijuana laws. In 2002, after the government's acknowledgment of rare marijuana enforcement, a trial period in which marijuana was decriminalized was enacted. However, due to the high number of citizens "going on a cruise" during the trial period, the movement towards decriminalization halted because of driver safety issues.[1]
In the United States
Perhaps the most famous cruising strip (or main drag) is McHenry Avenue in Modesto, California. The cruising culture of the early 1960s was depicted in the film American Graffiti. The film was set (but not actually filmed) in director George Lucas' home town of Modesto, which also hosts an annual "Graffiti Night" celebration in the film's honor.
Cruising in Detroit took place from the 1950s to the 1970s in the city's northern suburbs along Woodward Avenue, from Ferndale north to Pontiac.[2] Cruising along Woodward reached its peak in the mid 1960s, with muscle car competitions that were covered by journalists from Car and Driver, Motor Trend, and CBS World News Roundup. The cruising culture on Woodward Avenue faded in the 1970s when new car safety standards and higher gas prices altered American automotive design.
The Woodward Dream Cruise occurs on the third Saturday in August along the original cruising strip in Detroit's northern suburbs. The event is a tribute to the classic Woodward cruisers and attracts approximately 1 million people[citation needed] and 40,000 muscle cars, street rods, and custom, collector, and special interest vehicles.
Waukegan, Illinois has an annual summer cruising festival called "Scoopin' Genesee".[3]
In the 2000s, some cities (such as Milwaukee, Wisconsin) began to consider cruising a traffic offense.[4][5]
See also
UK and Ireland
Sweden
References
External links
- BBC article on Guildford car cruises
- BBC article on Nottingham car cruising
- BBC News article on a rare legal cruise
- The Detroit News, "Let's get ready to rumble: Cruising in the Motor City"
- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Online, "Cruising is getting harder to defend"
- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Online, "Cruisers' cars may be seized"
- Cullotta, Karen Ann. "Cruise Night, Without the Car", The New York Times, June 29, 2008.
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